Goodbye to Summer
by VeroMonster
Summary: FoMT - Kai returns to Mineral Town, only to have Popuri tell him news that may end his summers in Mineral Town forever.


Kai stepped out onto the hot beach, not bothering to flip the open sign on the door. No one came to the beach in the afternoon, anyways. It was too hot for fishing and swimming wasn't a popular pastime in Mineral Town.  
  
It was his fourth day in Mineral Town for the summer, and already it felt horribly wrong. Popuri hadn't visited him yet. The last two summers she had waited for him on the dock and came every day until he left. The only reason Kai could understand for her disappearance was Rick.  
  
He wandered down the dock, watching fish dart into the depths as his shadow passed. Rick had been getting worse and worse. At first he simply ignored Kai, but lately the hostility was becoming more visible. It was almost surprising Rick hadn't shown up at the beach yet to have a few words with Kai.  
  
Voices floated towards the end of the dock. Kai turned, instantly recognizing Popuri's light voice. Zack and Popuri were talking in the middle of the beach. Kai couldn't hear what they were saying, but Zack soon continued on his way to collect daily shipments. Popuri watched as the large man went up the steps onto the square.  
  
She didn't race down to the dock, or even to the store. Kai slowly walked back towards the beach, watching Popuri's still form. Even with her back to him, Kai could tell she was uncomfortable. Her rigid posture and clenched hands made him nervous.  
  
"Popuri," Kai called, hoping to keep his tone as light as hers. He walked off the dock and halfway towards her. Her shoulders sagged, and she was slow in turning to face him. Her face was expressionless, but her eyes looked as though she was about to cry.  
  
"Popuri," he said again as he walked up to her. He reached for her hands, but she instantly pulled them away. She crossed her hands across her chest and looked him straight on.  
  
"I'm marrying Jack."  
  
Kai frowned at her. Whatever happened to a simple hello?  
  
"Popuri, what are you talking about?" he asked, feeling irritated. Four days and she shows up babbling random words. Popuri glared at him, tightening her forehead and gripping her skirt.  
  
"I can't see you anymore, Kai. I'm marrying Jack!" she repeated almost angrily.  
  
Kai stared at her, feeling a surprising numb. It took him a few minutes to even remember who Jack was. A vague memory of a farmer came to mind. Jack had come to the shack quite a few times. More often than most of the villagers. He had been polite and friendly, but Kai hadn't bothered opening up much to him.  
  
"What?" he finally responded, still too confused to say much else. Popuri sighed and sat down on the sand, gazing out at the ocean.  
  
"I'm going to marry Jack. We're getting married in five days," she said, her voice still hollow with a tinge of fear. Kai sat down next to her, but stared at the sky instead of the sea. Several minutes passed before he decided on his emotions.  
  
"Why?" he asked, although it was barely a whisper.  
  
"Because I love him. Because he's always been there when I needed it," she stated, gaining courage as she spoke.  
  
"I would always be there! Popuri, I love you, too. I wanted you to come with me, and be with me, but..." Kai protested.  
  
"Jack didn't ask me to leave!"  
  
"You told me you were bored of this place! That you couldn't wait to leave it."  
  
"My feelings have changed. If you had been here, you might have seen that! A lot can happen in three months, Kai," Popuri said. Silence fell on the beach as both retreated into their own thoughts. Kai thought faster.  
  
"This has to do with Rick, doesn't it?" he asked slowly, thinking he was starting to understand. Popuri gasped out loud and stared at him. The tears her eyes were gone as anger returned.  
  
"How dare you! My brother has never decided my life for me. If I loved you enough, or if I loved Jack less, I would have gone with you. Rick would try to stop me, and I would still go. If I loved Jack and if Rick hated him, I would still marry him."  
  
Kai stared her, rapidly become angry. Angry at Popuri, angry at Rick, and especially angry at Jack. How could Popuri love Jack more than him? Jack wasn't as good looking, experienced, or adventurous as him. Popuri's future with Jack was just going to be Mineral Town, day after day, year after year. A future with Kai would be full of new cities and new discoveries.  
  
"How... how could you love him more than me?" he finally managed out, tightening his hands into fists.  
  
"Kai... I don't know. Jack visited me during winter when everything was bleak; he always helped my mother when she needed it; he was here. You were gone. How can you blame me for falling for Jack?" she questioned lightly, not expecting an answer.  
  
"So, when the cat's away, the mice will play, hm? Or is it 'out of sight, out of mind?'" Kai shot back, not bothering to hide the bitterness and anger in his words. Popuri scowled at the sand, her eyes beginning to fill with tears. Kai sighed and eased back a little.  
  
"Popuri. How am I supposed to feel?" he asked, starting to feel a little desperate. At first, he had thought it wouldn't be hard to talk Popuri to her senses. But he could see the look in her eyes and knew it was a losing battle. In the game of love, he was striking out.  
  
"I don't know, Kai. Sad, I guess. I-I didn't want you to get angry. I don't want you to hate me. I really don't. I don't want you to hate Jack, either. I don't think he even knows that I loved you," she said. Her eyes, bright red from the tears, refused to look at his face. She was watching the ocean.  
  
Kai could almost see the dreams dying. The dreams of other places and great adventures. They used to wade in the ocean, holding hands, and Popuri would tell them all to him. She was a wonderful dreamer. Anything, she said once, to escape Mineral Town.  
  
"What about your dreams?" he finally asked. The tears finally did spill from her eyes, slowly falling down her cheeks. But Popuri didn't wipe them off, and Kai felt the wall between them was too strong for him to do so.  
  
"I still have them. I can't give them up. But when I'm with Jack, they fade away a little. It doesn't hurt to think of them," she said softly, not taking her eyes from the ocean.  
  
Kai stared out with her. He was working through his feelings and his thoughts. He knew, with that last statement, he couldn't win Popuri back from Jack. The anger did ease, then. He couldn't be angry with Popuri, and it wasn't Jack's fault she had fallen in love with him. It was only natural Jack would return the feeling. Who could resist Popuri?  
  
With his emotions momentarily stable, it was time to cut her loose forever. Kai stood up, focusing entirely on Popuri. She wasn't particularly beautiful right then, crying and covered in sand, but it was last time they would alone together.  
  
"Popuri, go home. It's ok. I'll be ok. I might even come to the wedding. I'll probably even give up on you. But if I can't... I promise I won't come back once summer ends." He didn't want to say goodbye or cry any tears of his own, so Kai turned and walked into his restaurant. He knew Popuri was watching him, and he knew he couldn't look back.  
  
As the door banged shut behind him, Kai quietly prayed that neither Jack nor Rick decided to visit the beach very often this summer.  
  
END  
  
Notes: Well, this is my first real fanfiction. I hope it was fairly enjoyable to read. Sorry if the characterization was a little off. I'm still working on it. 


End file.
